The present invention relates generally to a package for electronic components mounted on tape, and particularly to a package, assembleable from a box blank for storing and removing a spirally-wound tape of a predetermined length having parallel lead electronic components mounted therein. The electronic components are typically condensers or resistors having parallel lead wires and the electronic components are mounted on the tape by means of the wires.
With the recent development of automatic machines for production of electronic components, it has become possible to manufacture these electronic components in great numbers and at high speed and to mount them automatically on tape. Using the lead wires of the component as the mounting means, such electronic components may be held equidistantly on a paper strip using an adhesive tape as the mounting means.
In general, the strip or tape is spirally-wound on a winding frame or core and transported and stored in this spirally-wound state. It can then be fed to an automatic inserting machine to be used in preparing printed circuits with the electronic components being removed from the tape as required. The electronic components are cut one by one and inserted at the specified positions into printed circuits. The transport and storage of the spirally-wound tape has presented some problems due to the fact that in the normal mounting arrangement electronic components protrude from one or both edges of the tape making them susceptible to damage. Naturally, sections of spirally-wound tape carrying components can be packaged, but then it becomes necessary to open each individual package and remove the tape therefrom as the tape is to be delivered to an automatic inserting machine. The manual handling of the packages is expensive and introduces the possibility of mistakes due to human error. Consequently, a package from which the tape could be fed without opening same is eminently desirable. Such a package should also be designed to protect the tape from dust and accidental contact either manual or with moisture.
A recent proposal for fulfilling this purpose includes a package box for mounting the spiral of tape carrying electronic components onto the feeding assembly of an electronic component inserting machine, keeping the spiral contained in the package box. The tape spiral is rotatably mounted inside the package, and outwardly folding or cutting off a portion of one of the side surfaces of the package, the tape carrying the electronic components is pulled from the box to be fed into the inserting machine.
The spiral of tape carrying the electronic components should be as tightly retained as possible in the packaged box so as not to damage the electronic components by shaking the spiral of tape in the package during transport or storage. However, the upper side and peripheral side of the spiral of tape should not make contact with the retaining means to facilitate the smooth rotation of the spiral in the package when the tape is pulled from the box. In order to avoid shaking during transport and storage in this conventional package box, top support flaps were provided to extend in a certain width from each edge of the side faces towards the center of the package box to support the spiral of tape firmly.
In this conventional package when a part of a side face is folded outwardly and the spiral of tape carrying electronic components is fed from the box, the support flaps remain in contact with and retain the upper side of the spiral of tape. At times this prevents the smooth rotation of the tape or may damage the electronic components mounted on the tape. If the support flaps are small enough to keep the contact with the tape at a minimum, it is impossible to protect the spiral of tape from shaking which results in the possibility of damage to the electronic components mounted on the tape. Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide an improved package for protecting the spirally-wound tape during storage and transport, yet adapted to free the spiral for feeding the tape into an automatic inserting machine.